NASA and Arizona State University’s Mars Education Program is offering students nationwide the opportunity to be involved in authentic Mars research by participating in the Mars Student Imaging Project (MSIP). Teams of students in the 5th through 12th grade will have the opportunity to work with scientists, mission planners and educators on the THEMIS team at ASU’s Mars Space Flight Facility, to image a site on Mars using the THEMIS visible wavelength camera onboard the Mars Odyssey spacecraft which is currently orbiting Mars every 2 hours.

National Science Education Standards-aligned MSIP curriculum has been developed to assist the lead adult facilitators of student teams. The curriculum is designed to fit within existing science curriculum and teach the already required objectives and standards using real world science instead of worksheets or simulations.
Involved students teams can participate in one of three formats of activities:

• On-site at the Mars Space Flight Facility – Tempe, AZ
• Distance-Learning
• Archived-data

There is no charge to participate in MSIP.

There are easy, but necessary steps to be involved with MSIP. They are as follows:

1. Fill out and submit an application
2. Download and begin working with the MSIP curriculum.
3. Complete the Model Activity and submit the Model Activity Results Form
4. Submit a Participating Science Team Proposal
5. Participate in selected format of activities (on-site, distance-learning, archived-data)
6. Select a site on Mars related to MSIP team’s research
7. Submit final scientific report for publication in the on-line MSIP Science Journal.

Student teams are required to complete each of the above steps. No Participating Science Team Proposals will be accepted if previous steps were not completed.

Dates for participation in one of these types of formats will be negotiated throughout the involvement process of MSIP.

For additional information and details about MSIP, take a look at the other links on our website!